About us
How we began and how it’s going
West Somerset Green Forum is a voluntary group based in West Somerset dedicated to raising environmental issues and fighting climate change. Originally named Forum 21, we took our name from the Agenda 21 movement formed to take the message of local sustainability through into the 21st century. Since its launch in 1998 and with a subsequent name change, West Somerset Green Forum has been responsible for a number of local initiatives, such as the now well-established Minehead farmers' market.
West Somerset Green Forum is good at generating ideas, finding funding, seeding new projects and running ongoing projects.
West Somerset Together is a West Somerset Green Forum initiative to bring together and support like-minded groups for exchange of ideas as well as instigation and execution of projects across West Somerset.
Our projects
Want to get involved? Read about our latest projects and get in touch with any ideas you have.
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Maureen Smith
Maureen is a retired Occupational Therapist and an environment and housing activist. She has been a member of Forum 21 since moving to Minehead in 2007 and joined the Board a few years later.
She was District and Town Councillor promoting the need for addressing climate and environment issues and for a low carbon economy in West Somerset. Maureen represents WSGF at the Hinkley A and B Stakeholders Group.
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Graham Boswell
Ecologist, Lichenologist & Mountaineer: Lecturer in Environmental sciences for 23 years. Since retiring from lecturing has been involved in a wide range of environmental and ecological projects.
Recent projects have included an ecological survey of a local parish, a hedgerow of England & trekking in the Himalayas with a group of clients. He is the chair of the West Somerset Green Forum community woodland.
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Elizabeth Atkinson
Elizabeth joined the WSGF in 2022 and has a professional background in education and equality. She has a lifelong interest in nature and wildlife which will be her main focus on the board.
She is currently coordinating a wildlife habitat and wildlife mapping project and plans to extend the project's scope across West Somerset as part of her work with WSGF and to link with other environmental and conservation projects.
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Hester Watson
Hester has lived in Carhampton since 2006. She worked as a support worker with a number of disadvantaged groups and since retirement has carried on this role as a volunteer with West Somerset CAB and the Centre for Sustainable Energy.
She has been involved with WSGF since it was set up and the energy project group has been active for most of that time. Volunteers were trained to survey homes and advise on what could be done to make them more energy efficient. More recently WSGF has worked with the Somerset Community Foundation to give surviving winter grants to older people in fuel poverty and help people communicate with their energy suppliers.
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David Croxton
David is a semi retired farmer and agronomist, specialising in growing and developing Miscanthus spp to help mitigate climate change. He is chair of West Somerset Community Car Partnership, and works within several local schemes. He supports Quantock Foodbank, Re Engage, is active as a volunteer within his local Community of Bicknoller, and was a trustee of CLOWNS, a local pre school childrens education charity until recently, when it merged with Young Somerset.
As a director of WSGF, he is involved with the EV Charge Project, which seeks to assist and promote the installation of publicly accessible Chargepoints on Community Assets, and to help promote the many changes needed to safeguard the environment and climate.
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Bill Butcher
Bill Butcher is a professional ecologist with over thirty years of experience in the UK and international biodiversity mapping, impact assessment and conservation. He is the lead author of the recently published UK Habitat Classification and a joint author of the concepts behind the Biodiversity Metric now adopted across England.
In West Somerset Bill proposed and started the development of the Steam Coast Trail linking Minehead and Watchet.
He is also a Director of the Somerset Climate Action Network.
Forum 21 Landmarks
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Forum 21 begins.
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Minehead Farmers’ Market - our first project.
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West Somerset Local Food Guide published.
Waste timber working party.
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Transport Guide published.
The Forum becomes a member of the West Somerset Strategic Partnership (WSSP), as sustainability representative.
Energy working party set up.
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Timber ReUse business begins and grant funded Development Officer appointed to set up centre.
Steering group set up.
Grant from West Somerset Sustainability Partnership for a paid worker.
Cycle working party set up.
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The climate change agenda now dominates: Greenpeace speaker draws 90 people .
Grant funded workers to progress Biodiversity Action Plan.
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Sustainable Community Strategy written with WSSP grant.
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Climate change activities reach many Film ‘An Inconvenient Truth’ shown to 400 people in Minehead.
Climate change meeting at Dunster castle oversubscribed.
Grant from WSC for an Energy Efficiency campaign, promoting home insulation and energy saving.
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WSSP grants to Forum 21 to produce a climate change strategy for West Somerset, for a Cycle West Somerset project officer and to produce an updated Transport Guide.
Second Energy Efficiency grant from WSC.
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The West Somerset Community Climate Change Strategy adopted and published; and Carbon Reduction Implementation Board (CRIB) created.
Third grant from for the Energy Efficiency campaign.
Twelve volunteer energy auditors trained to work with the Forum’s energy efficiency campaign, with a grant from WSC.
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Grant received for Anaerobic Feasibility study in MInehead.
MInehead Car Club set up.
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West Somerset Energy Fair at the Minehead Eye
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Western Somerset Forum 21 Limited set up
Steam Coast Trail project initiated
Community Woodland project initiated
Forum 21 invited to join the Somerset Surviving Winter project
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The Forum won the South West Community Footprint Award from National Energy Action
Open Homes in Western Somerset, demonstrating renewable energy in action
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Landlords’ Project set up with grant from WSDC
Energy Saving Centre set up by TMA
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Steam Coast Trail starts work on first stretch at Dunster with grant from Coastal Communities Fund
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Grant for Landlords’ project from West Somerset Council
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Pasture Power conference jointly with Exmoor Hill Farmers’ Network
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West Somerset Together set up by Forum 21
Plastic campaign
Forum 21 represents Western Somerset on management group of Somerset Convergence at its inaugural conference